Denny Hamlin has made NASCAR history to start the 2026 Cup Series season. Hamlin has become the first NASCAR Cup Series driver to lead over 600 laps in the NextGen car in the first 10 races of a season, as reported by NASCAR Insights on social media. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has 603 laps led after the Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway last weekend.
Kyle Larson previously held the record, leading 531 laps in the NextGen car through 10 races in 2024. Hamlin led 292 of his 603 laps in the Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway; however, he finished in second place behind Chase Elliott. The driver of the No. 11 car also led 134 laps at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and 131 laps at Kansas Speedway.
Advertisement
Hamlin has led laps in seven of the 10 races, but most of his damage came at Martinsville, Las Vegas, and Kansas. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has been dominant at those tracks, but he has only one victory at Las Vegas. Hamlin led a career-high 1,502 laps in 2021, and he only needs 900 more in 26 races to pass that mark.
More: Toyota provides honest take on Riley Herbst’s performances in 2026
This article originally appeared on Motorsports Wire: Denny Hamlin makes NASCAR history to begin the 2026 Cup season
Read the full article here
